My wife surprised my daughter and I by inviting us to her conference near Sibernik, Croatia and I have to admit I was very surprised..a..at the idea that I was going to visit Croatia before I’d visit, like California, or Sibernik before Chicago. Yes, I’d flown to Chicago before but only drove through it then to get to Goshen, Indiana, so that doesn’t count. Goshen, Indiana is also way up on everyone’s „Places to See“ list. I know I was there, I remember a prison.. and seeing a Notre Dame game on TV, but that is neither here nor there…
I had heard only good things about Croatia and its people and I was about to experience both and yes, I was looking forward to it. Unfortunately winter had loosened its grip on Europe grudgingly. In Germany, for example, March was colder than January, which isn’t saying much, since January had been so mild, and in Croatia the natives were definitely surprised at how long it had stayed so „cold“. Cold here is relative – 5° C is for many like summer in March – but we were on the Mediterranean, so..
I combined my trip to Krka with the run my wife ordered me to perform, as well as the workout preceeding it, which really got my juices flowing and allowed me to not be bothered by the chill at all and concentrate more on the scenery. Other visitors, though, seemed indecisive as to the more astounding part of their visit – either the magnificent waterfall or the stupid American running around in shorts through the ungodly temperatures – and their eyes showed it, looking first at my naked legs then to the waterfall and back again.
The Park is a very special place, and is immense in every sense of the word, so it does not matter where you enter it – everything is amazing – just be sure to tack on a visit to the waterfall at the end. When one visits the waterfall, parking is way above at the edge of a forest, and the well marked trails send you off down the hill toward the breathtaking sight. The way down is beautiful enough, the vegetation is typically Mediterranean, and it is almost a shame not to witness it in full bloom. At least we had peace and quiet; not many people dared venture into those Arctic-like weather conditions haha.
I had planned to send my wife and daughter ahead to look at the waterfall, then run my five Ks and meet them back at the top of the hill and compare notes. So, off they went, and off I went a short time later after my workout, and was I astounded by what my eyes and ears were able to drink in. The snow had melted, and the rivers were pumped to the gunwhales, and the power I felt screaming banshee-like over the falls made the trip worthwhile already. But at Krka, they have built a series of boardwalks that take you above, below, and actually through the waterfall, and to be surrounded on all sides by this nearly incomprehensible power is truly a mind boggling experience. If you’ve seen, heard, and felt the waves of the Pacific you’ll know what I mean.
Water was streaming through every nook and cranny of the downward-sloping Earth, even parts completely dry for most of the year. The boardwalks themselves were flooded in places (watch your step!) – and I got cold feet .At every possible height it flew, er, flowed, like the masterpiece of the greatest landscaper who ever lived. It was as if the land was the Titanic, starring Shay Duffin as the Pubkeeper, and others, and she was going down! And leaks had sprung where definitely no water should be, big ones that hopefully shan’t hamper the boat’s chances of staying afloat, but, alas, Kathy Bates likes Fired Green Tomatoes, so..
I ran over these boardwalks, an impressive architectual display in itself, when one considers the forces against which it is braving, and stalwarting, (two new verbs no one needs!), around trees and bushes which might be usually on land but not at this time of year, and felt part of something greater than myself. I felt immersed. All that rushing glory must have gone to my head. Thanks to these boardwalks, I could scamper back and forth above and below the waterfall and did so until I realized it was about time to meet my wife and daughter back at the car. OK, I had already passed them once so I knew I would get there first but patience is a virtue, right?
The path back to the top is challenging, I’ll admit; all in all it’s about eight hundred meters of up up up. But that is the price one pays to see something as truly magnificent as the waterfalls. I was pooped but proud after reaching the top, and kind of jokingly considered running back down to walk back up with my wife, who still had the car keys, and my daughter. I was to get my wish. After reaching her on her phone, she informed me that she had gone straight where a turn would have been the prudent choice, and was about eight kilometers closer to a town she shouldn’t have been near to at all. Gulp.
I saddled up my wagons and told myself at least I wouldn’t be getting chilly while I waited doing nothing, and began to jog back down the pretty hill.
I ran over that boardwalk and around that beautiful waterfall again.
I ran left out of the park and after about four kilometers I met my wife and an extremely peeved twelve-year-old, both of whom were definitely not in the mood to walk back up the hill again.
Guess who got to jog over the boardwalk, under the waterfall, up the to the car and drive back down to pick them up again? But it was good training, and, after all I had seen and heard and felt that day, it was definitely worth it. The power I had felt was not only impressive and intense to the highest degree, it was real where things like tanks, and McDonald’s, and Super Bowl titles are not. That’s a living power that’s always there, carrying on a life of its own, unbeknownst to almost all of us, who are too busy for it – but it’s the power that makes the world go round..